Troops Are Trying for Shift in Mali

By

Ellen Knickmeyer

Updated Feb. 6, 2013 7:46 p.m. ET

BAMAKO, Mali—West African troops are deploying, aiming to take the lead in holding ground won from Mali's insurgents, as French forces chased Islamist fighters linked to al Qaeda in the country's north, French and African officials said Wednesday.

Small groups of special-operations forces are part of a French-led campaign, including conventional ground forces and airstrike crews, focusing on militants who have sought refuge in a...